I am a second generation Teamster, having joined Local 879 in March 1983 as an owner operator at TNT Olex where I was elected steward in September 1983, a position I held until I left in 1985.

In January 1986 I was hired on at Yellow Freight Systems in Hamilton and elected steward there in February 1987, a position that I held until they closed the terminal and I transferred to St. Catharines in 1995. I was again elected steward in 1999 in the city department of the St. Catharines terminal and remained the steward until I joined the staff at Local 879 as a Business Representative in March 2011.

When I was brought on staff, I was assigned a large group of various companies from waste and recycling to trucking companies and automotive manufacturing plants where I negotiated numerous first agreements for new members of Local 879 and introducing those groups to the benefits of belonging to the strongest Union in the world. I’ve also chaired numerous negotiations to renew existing collective agreements, attended arbitration hearings, Human Rights tribunals, grievance meetings and dealt with the concerns of the membership on issues in their workplaces.

In August 2016 I was appointed to fill the term of office of retiring Secretary-Treasurer Brother Jim Chalmers. I also sit as a Trustee on the Local 879 Health and Welfare Plan, Ontario Short Haul Pension Plan as well as a Trustee on the Local 879 Ready-Mix Pension Plan. Recently, I was also appointed to be the Teamsters Canada Federal Political Action Coordinator for the Province of Ontario.

I have been a member of Local 879 for over thirty years and over those years I have been fortunate to be given the opportunity to represent, in various capacities, my fellow Sisters and Brothers and I look forward to serving the membership of this great Local in my new roles.